Grieving in the All but Lost
Modern poetry modern verse contemporary poetry contemporary verse modern poem contemporary poem
Our memories are retrieved by golden chains
That reach, reach, reach until they hook a jewel
From cavern depths. The caves are in our brains,
Some deeper than we know. No shallow pool
In Massachusetts that we dived in one
Warm night will do, but that has memories, too.
A moment in the bathroom tub once won,
Another in the frozen woods with you.
The hook and chain lift up a moment by
The highway when you stopped and bought a pot
Of purple flowers. If I try and try,
I can’t recall their name, though. That’s a blot
The chain and hook cannot repair. Retrieve
The beauty and the purple. Do not leave.